PHOENIXVILLE — For years, people walking by St. Peter’s Episcopal Church might have mistaken its empty rectory building for the Munsters’ home.

“It looked like a set that would be all ready for some kind of a Dracula movie,” the Rev. Marie Swayze said.

“(Or) a Halloween show,” Dr. Lorna Stuart chimed in.

More than a decade later, the run-down rectory building now stands as one of Phoenixville’s brightest spots, The Clinic, a non-profit medical center which serves those in need that don’t have medical insurance.

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Since opening its doors in 2002 across Church Street from borough hall, The Clinic has grown “exponentially,” according to Thomas Burd, the nonprofit’s executive director.

Between 9,000 and 10,000 patients are now seen yearly, he said.

At a time when debates about health care are at the forefront of the national consciousness, The Clinic in Phoenixville stands as an example of what can be done for affordable health care with dedication and community support.

Getting to that point has been a long road over a dozen years.

It began with Swayze coming to St. Peter’s Episcopal in 1998 as rector and finding the empty rectory, an eyesore at the time.

“The building: all grown-over, boarded up,” Swayze said. “Every night, drug addicts would sneak in and do their stuff and I’d find packets on the back step.”

“This was handed to me and made known to me (that) this was a terrible eyesore,” she said. “What (was I) going to do?”

A permit to demolish the building existed, but it would take $75,000 to demolish, Swayze said, a price a little steep for the church.

Attempts were made to rent the building out to nonprofits. However, none wanted the building unless they could buy it, which wasn’t an option available to Swayze.

Enter Lorna Stuart.

“At the same time as she was dealing with (that), I had been in practice in Phoenixville for 22 years,” Stuart said, of her family medical practice. “I was getting increasingly frustrated with insurance companies dictating how I should practice.”

On top of that, the increasing paperwork Stuart said she had to deal with was leaving “less time to deal with patients.”

Stuart became a parishioner at St. Peter’s Episcopal and also became acquainted with Swayze.

Together, they began a food pantry and started feeding some of those in need. That burgeoned into something more.

“When people saw Dr. Stuart, they know who she was, so we started doing blood pressures and blood sugars on Saturday morning when we gave people food,” Swayze said. “It started to be, ‘Wow, OK, there’s so much need for this.’”

Finally with a use for the moldering rectory in mind, Swayze and Stuart set out to secure money to renovate it.

They met with a mutual acquaintance in Swayze’s office who they thought might be a possible benefactor.

“This person said, ‘What is it you want to do?’” Swayze said. “I explained. Thirty seconds into the conversation, this person took out a checkbook and gave me a check for $100,000.”

That person, whose identity remains a secret, then told Swayze and Stuart that another check would be sent to them in a few months for another $100,000.

After lining up the proper contractors, Swayze organized a board of directors, did the proper filing, hired an architect and then got approval from the church council at St. Peter’s.

But more donations were needed, and both Swayze and Stuart “went out and talked to everyone under the sun,” whether it was to businesses, volunteer groups, social clubs or other churches.

Mayor Leo Scoda was the first person called on for help.

“He was very happy to speak up for us at the architectural review board,” Swayze said.

“I tried to be as helpful as possible,” Scoda said. “But, really, it was Mother Swayze and Dr. Stuart. Those two were really the ones that put everything together.”

Contributions from community organizations, churches, and individuals footed the bill beyond the $200,000 initially put forth by The Clinic’s mystery donor.

In October 2001, the $450,000 worth of renovations was completed and The Clinic opened its doors.

“The whole mission from the very beginning is to be radically open to persons who don’t have medical insurance,” Stuart said. “The only question (we ask patients) is: do you have insurance?”

Stuart said, “for the most part,” their patients have been honest.

In return, The Clinic does ask for payment, but there is no set number.

“The patient is asked what he or she can donate to their care,” Stuart said. “Some people write a check for $100 and some reach into their pocket for change and give us change.”

The average amount of money received per visit is roughly $16.

“That’s very consistent over the years,” Burd said.

But payment in U.S. currency isn’t the only thing accepted for care.

Swayze, who is now with a church in Philadelphia, said they’ve taken “in-kind trades” over the years.

One man, a carpenter, repaired the back stoop of The Clinic the same day he was treated, then returned the next day to fix the steps leading into the basement.

“They’re giving the best gifts they can,” Swayze said.

Donations are what keeps The Clinic running. On top of grants received from local businesses, churches and charity groups, annual fundraisers like a dinner, a golf outing, and a mail drive are held.

Both Stuart and Swayze maintain they won’t take any government money, outside of grants that go directly to something like specific vaccines. They want The Clinic to remain private with no strings attached.

A rotation of volunteers and a small, regular staff which includes Stuart and Dr. Susan Prouty as resident doctors run the nonprofit.

Swayze and Stuart said they have a hundred people that want to volunteer at The Clinic.

The Clinic does a variety of things, from treating common illnesses, to performing electrocardiograms, to helping with drug treatment or even eye care.

Although they originally took all comers, The Clinic has had to dial back its service area to a radius of roughly 5 miles. Still, anyone that comes in can be referred to another clinic the nonprofit keeps on a list.

In addition to medical care, The Clinic continues in its origins of giving out food, as well as clothing and toiletries.

“A couple of years ago, I gave a bag (of toiletries) to a woman and she started crying,” Stuart said. “I asked her why and she said, ‘This is the first gift I’ve had in 20 years.’”

Stuart and Swayze believe they’re fighting a stigma that is associated with getting treatment at a clinic.

“It feels like they’re walking into a home or a first-rate hotel,” Swayze said. “That’s the way we wanted it to happen. Frankly, Jesus wouldn’t have asked for a social security number, why should we?”

“We want to have many people have a good, reliable place to come that is their medical home,” Stuart said.

At the very least, The Clinic has proven that community-oriented health care for those that are truly in need can work.

“From what I understand, when The Clinic started, it was a real experiment,” volunteer lab technician Nancy Vibbert said.

After 10 years, Swayze and Stuart say they have a huge waiting list of medical professionals dying to work for the non-profit that served more than 60,000 patients in its existence.

It’s probably safe to say the experiment was a success.

Part II Monday

A 10th anniversary dinner is set to be held Oct. 18 at 6 p.m. at Colombia Station. Call 610-935-5464 for tickets.

About the Author

Frank Otto is a general assignment reporter covering Phoenixville, Limerick and Spring-Ford schools in addition to features and spot news. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Otto moonlights with the sports department on occasion. Reach the author at fotto@pottsmerc.com
or follow Frank on Twitter: @fottojourno.